Ironer



April 21, 1942. H. M. RUMBA'UGH IRONER Filed July 18, 1940 INVENTORPatented Apr. 2l, 1942 UNITED STATESk PATENT OFFICE 5 Claims.

The present invention relates to ironing machines and more particularlyto machines of the rotary roll, power operated type, which areespecially suitable `for domestic use. More especially, the presentinvention is directed to a novel form of ironing machine of thecharacter indicated, which facilitates and expedites ironing operationsand which permits proper ironing of various articles in a manner notheretofore possible on previous types of machines of this gen-l eralclass.,

It is Well known that in order to properly iron a mans shirt on ironingmachines of 'the form heretofore manufactured, requires substantialskill, which may be acquired only as the result of considerable effortand practice. It is also known that the sales of ironing machines inpast years have been greatly retarded by reason of the fact thatprospective purchasers of such machines could not be easily andconveniently taught a simple series of operations for performing aAnother object is to provide `an improved ironing machine Aof thecharacter indicated, having a padded roll, the external diameter ofwhich does not exceed 4% inches. 1

A further object is to provide an improved form of ironing machine ofthe character indicated 1 wherein the diameter of the roll and the sizeof the housing, which provides support for the roll 'at onel end, are ofsuch size and shape as to permit -telescoping thereover of a sleeve of amans shirt in order to permit disposition of the other proper ironingoperation on a shirt and other articles of apparel. Some organizationsmerchandising machines of this general type have employed especiallyskilledpersons for making demonstrations of the various essential stepsfor performing a satisfactory ironing operation on a shirt and onotherarticles. However, it has'been found that prospective purchasers, afterhaving observed skilled demonstrators perform, had considerableclifculty in following the proposed procedure of the demonstrator,without great effort and necessitating a great amount of practice beforebecoming sufficiently skilled to produce a satisfactory ironingoperation.` As a result of these difficulties, ironing machines for homeuse have up to the present time acquired a status as being aninstrumentality adapted primarily for ironing flat work. This conditionis the result of the fact that all machines as heretofore constructedemployed large diameter rolls, and the support for the rolls were ofsuch designs that the machines did not lend themselves for use in aconvenient and entirely practical manner for performing ironingoperations on various garments and miscellaneous pieces of material tobe ironed.

One of the primary objects of this invention is to provide a novel formof ironing machine which, dueto its form and construction, permitsproper ironing of various articles of apparel and other articles andwhich also permits ironing of a mans shirt in a relatively simplemanner, requiring practically no previous experience or practice on thepart of the operator.

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sleeve of the shirt in telescopic relation around the roll in positionto be ironed.

A still further object is to provide an improved ironing machine whichpermits performing satisfactory ironingoperations on garments and otherarticles more expeditiously than heretofore possible.

A still further object of this invention is to provide an improvedironing machine of the character indicated, which is relatively simplein construction, durable in operation, and economical to manufacture.

Further characteristics. and important features of my invention are: asingle thickness of a garment sleeve may be ironed, the entire width ofthe roll and shoe may be utilized, thereby eliminating overheating ofsome portions of the shoe, lessening the chances of scorching and Wasteof heat during ironing operations, and the ease and quickness ofshifting sleeved garments on the machine. I

My novel form of machine also produces a number of other advantageousresults, mainly in that in the employment of a relatively small diameterroll, there is effected a saving in metal of the inner cylinder as Wellas the padding material, which makes it possible, if desirable, to usesmaller Watt heating elements for obtaining the same amount of heat perunit area as is available in machines of this general type nowmanufactured; and it will be apparent that when using an equivalent sizeheating element as used in present machines, it is possible, if desired,to materially speed up the roll for increasing the speed of performingironing operations. By reason of the small size roll, which ispositioned for convenience above a platform or table, it is possible toobtain greater clearance between the bottom of the roll and the platformor table,

upon which the ironer is mounted, and which clearance facilitatesfolding and gathering of the ironed material without restriction.

With the foregoing and other objects in View which will appear as thedescription proceeds, the

pended claims.

parallel spaced relation to the table 2.

bination, and arrangementl of parts herein specifically described andillustrated in the accompanying drawing, but it is to be understood thatthe latter is merely illustrative of an embodiment of the invantiomandthat the actual needs of practice and manufacture may require certainmechanical variations from the embodiment means andV ironer-shoeactuating means;

Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic view showing motor,

l ironer, electrical connections and a switch device;,and

Fig. is a fragmentary elevational view of the ironingmachine showinga-mans shirt disposed thereon for performing an ironing operation on theshirt.

This `application is a continuation in part yof my co-pendingapplication, Serial No. 317,363-, led February 5, 1940, entitled IronersvAs maybe seen in the drawing, the ironing machine embodying thepresentv invention is, in general of a conventional form including atable I having a top 2, upon which the ironer proper is mounted'andsupported. The ironer proper includes an electrically operated motor 3,preferably mounted beneath the table top and having drive connections,portions of which extend into and are enclosed 'by a housing 4 securedon the4 top of the table 2`. l l A padded, cylindrical ironing roll 5extends in a generally horizontal direction in substantially issupported from one end only by a suitable connection With the housing 4in a manner similar to that employed in most forms of ironing machinesnow being manufactured, Due to this construction, the other-end of theroll is free and a unsupported, and facilitates the performance ofvarious ironing operations on articles of wearing apparel and' the like,in a manner well understood in the art. vIt is to be understood that-theroll is rotatably supported-by the housing 4 and includes suitableconnections with the power operated driving mechanism enclosed withinthe housing.

lMounted rearwardly of the roll'is a conventional form of shoe 6, havingits working :face

, shaped to conform to the curvature or contour of the periphery of theroll 5. Said shoe is ad- .iustably and movably supported on a bracket 1,and isadapted for movement into and out of cooperative position with theroll. understood that; said shoe' may be either electrically energized,gas or steam heated, and may be mounted in association with controllingdevices for either manuaLindependent actuation,

or in association withthe power operated driving mechanism,'driven bythermotor, for automatically moving the shoe into and out of cooperativeengagement with the roll.

The driving connections between the motor 3 and the roll 5. areparticularly shown by Fig. 3,

Said roll -1 Itis to be' Cil shown. It is, therefore, not intended tolimit the -invention resides in the novel construction, comand, asillustrated, include a reduction gear case 8, adapted for receiving anysuitable gear reduction mechanism operable in connection with the motorshaft, a shaft 9 having a bevel gear IU thereon cooperating with thereduction gear and disposed within the housing 4. Gear IIJ cooperateswith a gear I2 mounted on an end of a horizontally disposed shaft I3,the latter extending through the roll 5 and within a hollownon-rotatable 'tubular member I4 extending from an apertured closure I5in housing 4, to a supporting collar I1 located near the opposite endofthe roll. Mounted adjacent to the end of shaft I3 and rigidly attachedto the shaft and to the wall of the roll 5 is a flanged driving elementI8. Ele

ment I8 is disposed between the support I'I and a collar I9 secured toshaft I3 `by a screw 20.

The means, as shown, for moving the bracket 'I and the shoe 6 towardsand away from the roll includes a horizontally extending rotatable Aorpartially rotatable shaft 2| having attached to an end thereof anoperating arm 22 having a handle` 23. Arm 22 is secured to the shaft anda movement thereof rotates the shaft, which latter extends throughbearings 24. The opposite end of the shaft is connected with abifurcated end25 of the bracket 1. 26 designates a screw for tighteningthe end of the bracket on the actuating shaft. As particularly shown byFig. 4, 21 designates a contact plate or switch mounted on and movablewith the shaft 2I designed to make and break the circuit from the motor,thus conveniently effecting the driving and stopping of the of ironingoperations upon the machine in a' manner not possible on all other priortypes of roll. Y

This invention more specifically resides in the provided diameter of theironing roll `5 and also in the size and arrangement of the associatedhousing 4, which encloses the power drive connection to and providessupport for the roll 5 at one end.

It has been found from substantial experiment that the external diameterof the padded roll 5 should not exceed 4% inches, and preferably 'of alesser diameter, in order to facilitate and increase the potential'range of use of the ironing machine in performing ironing operations onvarious articles, as will hereinafter be more particularly pointed out.However, for most satisfactory results and to adapt the machine to arelatively wide range of use, I have found that the external diameter ofthe padded roll preferably should be within the range of 3 inches to 4inches.

After the desired external diameter of the roll is ascertained, thehousingA is preferably designed and dimensioned so that the peripheraldimension of the housing at any point throughout-.fthe major portion ofits length is equal to or less than the peripheral external .dimensionof the roll.

'I'he purpose of a relatively small diameter of roll and correspondinglysmall peripheral dimension of the housing is to enable the performanceironing machines. The comparatively small diameter of the roll nowpermits ironing of shirts, puffed sleeves, pleated areas of garments,ruilled curtains, childrens garments, and other articles as pajamas andslacks, in a highly satisfactory manner; and in the performance of thenecessary ironing operations on certain of these articles as, forexample, shirts, it is possible, in addition to performing an improvedironing operation. to eliminate several of the steps or operations whichwere heretofore foundabsolutely necessary in connection with the properironing of shirts on machines now available. By virtue of the size andrelationship of the roll and the housing, it is possible to iron. in afew minutes time, an average size mans shirt on my improved machine in anovel, relatively simple manner. which practically eliminatesy thenecessity of practice or instructions to learn how to perform asatisfactory ironing operation.

For convenience in understanding` the iinportance of my invention, oneform of my novel method of ironing a shirt will be briefly described asfollows: First, place the lefthand sleeve, cuff rst, telescopically overthe roll and draw it down around and over the housing 4, and then gatheror bunch the sleeve around the housing, together with the body of theshirt, so as todraw onto the roll in telescopic fashion the righthandsleeve of the shirt to a position where'the cuff just overhangsthe free,unsupported end of the roll 5, as illustrated in Fig. 5. The roll withthe righthand sleeve thereon is then positioned so that the buttonholeedge of the placket, as indicated'at Ain Fig. 5, is in positionto beengaged by the shoe when the latter is moved into cooperative'. relationwith the roll so as to iron substantially one-half of the peripheralextent of the sleeve, or substantially to the underarm seam.- Asillustrated in Fig. 5 of the drawing this portion of the sleeve is inprocess of being ironed. Then the roll .with the sleeve thereon isturned back toward the operator, removing bulges of excess materialproduced in the unironed portion of the sleeve as a result of theperformance of the above mentioned ironing operation, and the remainingperipheral portion of the sleeve is then ironed, commencing with theunderarm seam and continuing up to the button edge of the placket, asindicated at B in Fig. 5. The next step is to shift the ironed portionof the sleeve a short distance off the end of the roll so as to disposethe shoulder portion adjacent said sleeve on the roll in position to beironed. In ironing the shoulder portion, portions of the front and backof the shirt are also ironed. Then the righthandsleeve and the body ofthe shirt is slipped along the roll so that the entirel yoke, shoulderto shoulder, is positioned to be contacted by the shoe for performing anironing f operation thereon. The 4next step is to readjust the shirt todispose theflefthand shoulder porapproximates the range of 1200 watts.The shoes usually are so constructed as to distribute heat overarelatively Wide area of shoe surface.` By virtue of my novel form ofmachine, it will be obvious that by utilizing the same maximum wattageand substantially the same pressure applying means as heretoforeemployed, I obtain a relatively high degree of heat per unit of surfaceof shoe face as well as'an increased amount of pressure per unit ofsurface of shoe face. Also faster recovery or recuperation of theironing shoe heat. In view of the potential increase of both pressureand heat per unit area of the shoe face, it is possible to materiallyincrease the peripheral speed of the roll, thereby greatly expeditingironing operations on the machine, as compared to machines nowavailable.

Due to the fact that I employ a relatively small diameter roll, I amable to utilize a correspondingly small (cross sectional) size shoe,which, together with the roll, by reason of their small peripheralsurface contact, permits rapid liberation of the steam which isgenerated in the ironing operation. This condition, together with thepossibility of increased speed of the roll, permits obtaining a rapiddrying of the ironed material, and thereby dispenses with the necessityof pas`s. ing the material through the machine more than once, such asis often necessary with many present day machines, in ironing certaintypes of articles.

Although I have herein shown and described a preferred embodiment of myinvention, manition of the shirt upon the roll and perform an ironingoperation thereon, as above described; and then the body of the shirt isshifted off the roll to dispose the lefthand sleeve in telescopicrelation on the roll for performing an ironing operation thereon in 'thesame manner as described in connection with the righthand sleeve. Afterthese ironing operations are performed, the shirt is removed from themachine and the various parts of the back; sides, and front, togetherwith the cuffs and collar, are ironed in a conventional manner in anydesired sequence as flat work. Of course, if desired, the ironing of thecuffs and collar may be performed intermediate certain other stepsof theprocess of ironing a shirt.

It is well known that in order to perform a satisfactory ironing`operation on machines of this general class, the two controllingfactors are pressure and heat. In most forms of machines of this generaltype as heretofore made within recent years, the shoe of machineselectrically operated are wir'ed for maximum wattage, which festly it iscapable of modification and rearrangement of parts without departingfrom the spirit and scope thereof. I do not, therefore, wish to beunderstood as limiting this invention to the precise form herein shownand described, except'as it may be so limited in the appended claims.

1. In a shirt ironer of the character described' a cylindrical rotatableironing roll having an external diameter not exceeding 4% inches, asupport at one end thereof approximately of a girth throughout a majorlportion of its length not exceeding the diameter of said roll, said rolland support being externallyv unobstructed so as 'to enable drawingthereover a sleeve of a mans shirt of normal range of sizes, whereby asleeve and the body portion of said shirt may be telescoped over andgathered or bunched along said support while the other sleeve of saidshirt surrounds the roll in position to be ironed, the constructionthereby enabling successive changes in the positioning of the shirtrelative to the roll so that single-thickness ironing of the sleeves anda. complete ironing of al1 other portions of the shirt is attained.

2. In a shirt ironer of the character described,I

a cylindrical rotatable ironing roll having an eX- ternal diameter notexceeding 4% inches,a support at one end thereof approximately of agirth vthroughout a major portion of its length not exceeding l5 inches,said roll and support being externally unobstructed so as to enabledrawing thereover a sleeve of a mans shirt-of normal range of sizes,whereby a sleeve and body portion of said shirt may be telescoped overand gathered or hunched along said support while the other sleeve ofsaid shirt surrounds the roll in a position to be ironed, theconstruction thereby enabling successive changes in the positioning ofthe shirt relative to the roll so that singlethickness ironing of thesleeves and a complete ironing of au other portions of the shirt isattained. V

3. In an ironer of the character described, a rotary cylindrical ironingroll and coacting shoe, said roll having an external diameter notexceeding 4% inches, and means for supporting therroll from at least oneend, said parts being constructed and arranged to permit telescoping asleeve ofa mans shirt of normal range of sizes, over the roll and saidmeans.

4. Inan ironer of the character described, a rotary cylindrical ironingroll and coacting shoe, said roll having an external diameter notexceeding 4% inches, and means providing support for said roll at oneend, the other end of the roll being free and unsupported, the portionof the meansl disposed immediately adjacent the said one end of the rollhaving a peripheral dimension of not more than 15 inches, said roll andthe portion of said means lying immediately adjacent the said one end ofthe roll being externally unobstructed so as to permit telescoping asleeve of a mans shirt of normal range of sizes,v over said roll andsaid portion of the support means.

5. In an ironer of the character described,` a rotary cylindricalironing roll member, means for supporting said roll member at one end,the other end of the roll member being free and unsupported, and a shoemember, one of said members being movable into and out of cooperativeengagement with the other, the peripheral di- ,mension of one of saidmembers not exceeding fifteen inches, at any point throughout its entirelength, whereby a sleeve of a mans shirt of normal range of sizes may betelescoped over said last mentioned member for performing an ironingoperation thereon.

HUGH M. RUMBAUGH.

